broadwayblue

Or one could rent their snorkel equipment from the dive shop in Whalers Village (next to the ABC Store I believe) for a week for the price the Sheraton charges for a day. We did.

broadwayblue

To me it is pretty hard to fathom someone not bringing their laptop with them. I've been to Maui twice in the past 18 months and brought mine both times. Considering there is no personal IFE on the AA flights I've been on it doubled as a DVD player on the trip...plus when I get there I still want to be able to access websites (like personal banking, etc.) that I'd prefer not to have to visit on a public computer. Have you thought about a netbook? They can be had for $300 and weigh under 4lbs.

tvelinsk

We have now completed our 7 night stay, and have the following comments to add:

Building 1 is a fantastic location in this property. Our room was 1 room away from the stairway to the pool and the lobby, and just down the hall from the path to the parking garage. I was also able to access the pool wireless by sitting on the lanai in front of our bedroom. We didn't see much of most of this property because everything we wanted was so close to our room.

Food is really expensive. We spent $18 including tip on a plate of nachos by the pool one day. But we found Aloha Mixed Plate in Lahaina 3 days into our trip, and ate their every afternoon after that. They serve real Hawaiian Plate Lunch along with many other grilled foods, and have a Happy Hour everyday between 2 and 6 with some of the best Mai Tais I have every had! Right on the ocean - cool ocean breeze usually wafting through the dining deck. Our most expensive meal was $42 for 3 people including alcohol.

This was our first trip to Maui so I can't compare the traffic, but it didn't seem bad at all while we were there.

Previous posters have stated issues with getting their rooms cleaned, but ours was always finished and in ship-shape by 10am every morning. I don't know if that was a function of low occupancy or that we were out of the room down at the pool by 8:30am every morning, but we got fantastic service.

arcticgrin

Has someone stayed in Building 6? Are all the rooms in Building 6 oceanview?
Can you recommend a room/suite # to ask for when I check in?

slippahs

Oops, strike that... The US Diver's set is $43, now less another $10 rebate.

Hvanv0405

we were just in Building 6 in Feb. All the rooms are great but i'd try and ask for the top floor. . which I think is 4th floor. The room couldn't compare to our Westin Villa (timeshare) but the view was priceless!

Very quiet, long LONG walk to lobby but not bad to the beach and can drive from lobby to separate parking up hill to building 6.

I video'd the room and view but spent quiet awhile on the whales off our balcony, the first few sec show the room.

here's a few pix too
http://hoeraufmaui2009.shutterfly.com/1049

http://hoeraufmaui2009.shutterfly.com/1047

http://hoeraufmaui2009.shutterfly.com/1044
http://hoeraufmaui2009.shutterfly.com/1045

Renard

I've stayed in the rooms over there twice and it is a quite nice location... makes up for the long trek to the rest of the hotel. I'd have no problem staying over there again. The view is quite nice and it is quiet.

badpelican

What I mean is I was given the option of upgrading from a SPG reward room to a ocean view (or partial ocean view - I don't recall) at the Sheraton Maui for an additonal 2500 points per night. I didn't take it at the time but was told I could do it later.

Others have reported being upgraded to that level of room or even more at this resort being a gold member, of course with the usual caveats. That being said if I use some points to get the upgrade would it still be possible that I would be upgraded beyond that level?

The stay will be in the last week in August, past the prime summer travel season.

I stayed there with my family in 2007 in a deluxe ocean front room. We are mainly going for the location on the beach and the pool (for the kids). Still it would be nice to relax on the lanai with something to look at besides the parking lot. Any thoughts?

(This is a repost of same question on gold upgrade topic that didn't garner any replies)

slippahs

At the Sheraton Maui right now and the top floor in Building 6 is the 5th floor, since we're currently on the 4th and there's one above us.

Great stay at the Sheraton as usual. Received an upgrade to Building 6 and it's a great view as usual right over the water.

Hotel does seem to be fairly busy but we're glad we chose the Sheraton over the Westin this time to avoid the crowds.

One interesting thing I noted was the Sheraton's "we tidy, you treat," program, where if you forgo housekeeping, you can get a $25 dining credit (or $40 if you do first seating at 5:30). Seems like a fairly good deal.

slippahs

Correcting my previous post, it's $40 at Costco (in Iwilei).
We rented a single mid-grade set after bringing one up from home for $6/day at the Snorkel Bob's site in Kapalua. Not bad.

Mahalo

Really hadn't thought about the Sheraton when looking at Starwood properties in Maui. The Sheraton is priced about the same in terms of $$ and starpoints as the Westin. With price being equal, has anyone been to both the Sheraton and Westin who can offer comparisons? I'll be traveling with 2 young boys and think they might really enjoy the pool area at the Westin. Is the Sheraton worth consideration?

schoflyer

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/starw...=Sheraton+Maui

Try this thread. I picked Sheraton today.

KSinNYC

Sorry, but I guess we'll have to agree to have different opinions on this one. A business center is a perfectly acceptable solution, and is actually a nice profit center in most hotels. But I do think it's reasonable to expect internet access in a Sheraton, without REQUIRING somebody to bring the hardware with them.

KSinNYC

Yes, we saw this too... unfortunately on our next to last day so we couldn't use it. But I think it's a great idea and I wish they had displayed the information more prominently (the card was tucked in our folder along with a bunch of menus and timeshare info... maybe a more prominent place to put it would be with the card about re-using towels?)

realist9350

Hi all, I stumbled upon this forum via google, in reference to the Westin vs Sheraton thread.

I am pretty sure we are going to choose Sheraton maui for our Oahu-Maui honeymoon next October (or early November) 2010. This is based on several things I've come to determine in research, namely:

Better beach (satelite photos seem to confirm this)
Quieter location
Less screaming children
Newer building

Questions:

1)Can someone explain the Starwood Preferred Guest in laymen's terms? I found spg.com to be very confusing. I just want to know if there is any way for a new guest to get a discount, free night, etc. I believe we are going to stay in Outrigger Wakiki on the Beach in Oahu, but is there a discount to stay at two starwood hotels (such as [Westin] Moana Surfrider and Sheraton)? Should I mention we are on honeymoon when we arrive?

2)Shuttle service vs rental car. The Sheraton site lists shuttle to surrounding areas. Lahaina? Airport? Also, we want to do the Road to Hana. I was told you can rent a car right at the Sheraton for 1 day to do that. Is it worth getting a car for all 5 days we'll be in Maui or just that 1 day? Will a cab cost just as much for airport pickup and dropoff on arrival and departure day?

3)Assuming we book the cheapest rate, what building are we likely to end up in?

4)Does snorkeling at Black Rock on Ka'anapali rival the Hanauma Bay experience on Oahu? Should we skip Hanauma Bay since we can snorkel right at Black Rock in the latter part of our trip?

Any other advice/ideas appreciated.

Thanks

Dave